Appliance Store Uniforms: Polos, Quarter-Zips and Sweatpants

Appliance store uniforms have a harder job than most retail uniforms. The sales floor is huge and full of washers, ranges and refrigerators, so a shopper needs to spot a salesperson from across the room. Delivery and install crews walk into customers' kitchens and laundry rooms. And the showroom, the loading dock and the warehouse are often cold for half the year. The uniform package we see appliance retailers ask for most is three pieces: polos, quarter-zips and matching sweatpants, all in one color family. Here is how to put it together. Start with embroidered polos and company layers with your logo.

The three-piece appliance store uniform package

• Polos for the everyday sales floor uniform
• Quarter-zips as the warm layer for the showroom, the dock and managers
• Sweatpants for warehouse, delivery prep and team days, matched to the tops

Three pieces per person, with polos in a quantity of two or three, covers most staff for a full year.

Polos for appliance sales staff

The polo is what customers see first. It tells them this person can answer questions about capacity, finishes and delivery dates, and it photographs well when a customer asks for help on video with the manager at home. A heathered grey, often called grey melange, is a strong choice on an appliance floor. It looks clean against stainless steel and white appliances, hides dust from boxes, and reads differently from what most shoppers wear.

Put the store logo on the left chest at 3 to 3.5 inches wide, and an embroidered first name on the right chest if your team wants it. Performance polos like the Adidas premium polo ($62) handle a full day on a hard floor. A pique polo is the classic lower-cost option. See embroidered names on work shirts for the name layout.

Quarter-zips for cold showrooms and loading docks

Appliance stores have big doors. Every time a delivery goes out or a truck comes in, the cold comes onto the floor. A quarter-zip over the polo keeps staff warm without hiding the uniform, because the collar of the polo still shows and the logo moves to the quarter-zip's chest. Fleece quarter-zips in a darker grey like carbon or charcoal pair well with grey polos. The Sport-Tek quarter-zip is $39, and our post on staff quarter-zips covers more options. Managers often wear the quarter-zip every day, which quietly sets them apart.

Matching sweatpants with the store logo

Sweatpants are the piece people are surprised to see in a uniform package, and the piece staff like most. Warehouse and delivery prep work is physical, and heavyweight sweatpants are warm and easy to move in. A small logo on the left thigh, about 3 inches wide, ties them to the tops. In a heathered athletic grey they match the polos and quarter-zips, so a team in all three pieces looks deliberate. Browse custom joggers and sweatpants.

Appliance delivery and install crews

The delivery crew is the face of the store inside the customer's home. Their shirt has to answer "who are you?" before the doorbell finishes ringing. Put the store name large on the back, 10 to 12 inches wide, and the logo on the front. A durable tee or a hoodie in winter works better than a polo for lifting a 300-pound refrigerator up a staircase. Our guide to retail store uniforms for floor, delivery and warehouse staff breaks down each role.

One color family across the whole package

The team looks like one company when every piece shares a color family and the same logo. A set that works well:

• Grey melange polos with a navy or black logo
• Carbon grey fleece quarter-zips with a white or light grey logo
• Athletic heather sweatpants with a small logo matching the polo thread

Use one logo file and the same placement on every chest. Save one design per garment so every reorder matches.

Sizing a team package

A clean way to run it: agree on the package and the price first, then collect sizes from each person. Ask everyone for their normal size in each garment, since a person may wear a large polo and an XL quarter-zip. Every piece is made to order, so there is no size curve to guess and no leftover stack of mediums in the back room. Extended sizes usually cost a few dollars more.

Team pricing and more than one location

On eligible garments, volume pricing applies automatically once you order enough of the same item. A team of a dozen with polos, quarter-zips and sweatpants for everyone often reaches that on the polos alone. If you run more than one store, use the same saved designs at every location, and ship each store's order directly to that store. Seasonal help in the holiday rush can be outfitted one person at a time; see uniforms for seasonal employees.

Try one set first

Order one polo, one quarter-zip and one pair of sweatpants for a manager, wear them for a week, and check the colors under your showroom lights. Then order the team. The steps are in how to order one sample before buying for your whole crew.

Is there really no minimum?

None. One piece is a real order at normal pricing, with no small-order surcharge and no setup or digitizing fee. Every piece is made to order and ships in about 5 to 9 business days, and that window is the same for one piece or a few hundred. On eligible garments, volume pricing applies automatically once you order enough of the same item, usually starting around 25 pieces.

See the merch in real life

Real garments, printed and embroidered to order.